I don't believe in or subscribe to this whole "skill" thing. I don't practice drawing and firing when I shoot and I don't dry fire; I don't aim at things loaded or un- at home and don't think I'm Rambo.

The only skill there is is accuracy. The rest you can't practice unless you put yourself in high stress and dangerous situations daily. It is quite impossible to imitate red zone defense.

I don't at all believe muscle memory can overcome fear or stress when it wasn't developed in it, and find this whole concept Laughable.

Yes. I agree with this post.

we should never practice anything, because practice will never be like the real thing.

when you're in practice, you cannot simulate the emotions, stress, excitement and feel of playing in, and trying to win, the super bowl; therefore, NFL teams should just stop practicing.

we should never practice anything, because practice will never be like the real thing.

when you're in practice, you cannot simulate the emotions, stress, excitement and feel of playing in, and trying to win, the super bowl; therefore, NFL teams should just stop practicing.

Exactly.

I read a story about a LEO that was involved in a shooting in the '80s that required him to do a reload during the incident. When the detectives investigated they couldn't find the 6 empty casings from his revolver.
They took him back to the scene and he showed them where they should be still nothing. He eventually found them IN HIS FRONT POCKET. He explained that is where he placed his ejected brass when he went to the range to keep from having to bend over and pick them up.

I agree there is no real way to simulate a life or death situation. The physical motions you make in training will likely be duplicated in combat.

I don't believe in or subscribe to this whole "skill" thing. I don't practice drawing and firing when I shoot and I don't dry fire; I don't aim at things loaded or un- at home and don't think I'm Rambo.

The only skill there is is accuracy. The rest you can't practice unless you put yourself in high stress and dangerous situations daily. It is quite impossible to imitate red zone defense.

I don't at all believe muscle memory can overcome fear or stress when it wasn't developed in it, and find this whole concept Laughable.

What's laughable is this whole post. Muscle memory is a key component to shooting proficiency and does not matter IN THE LEAST how is was developed.

By your logic, it's useless to practice playing a musical instrument unless you are on stage, in front of a crowd, nervous and jittery. What baloney...

OP-Don't let this poster influence your thinking with his obvious lack of experience with firearms. Dry fire practice is CRUCIAL in developing and maintaining a good fundamental skill set. Competetive shooters dry fire tens of thousands of times to keep good form as shooting is a perishable skill.

Practicing dry fire, drawing from retention, sight acquisition, trigger control and follow through routinely will help you hone your skills and keep you well rehearsed should the time come when you need your firearm, whether it be at the range, competition or (God forbid) a self defense situation.

Example-Ever driven a manual transmission for a long period of time, then get behind the wheel of an automatic? Notice how your foot goes for the (non-existent) clutch without even thinking about it? That's muscle memory. If you could draw, obtain a sight picture and fire the same way your foot went for the clutch...without having to think about it...how invaluable would that skill be to you should the need ever arise?

Lasers are great for that, you can actually SEE what you're doing wrong and can adjust accordingly.

Snap caps are great, if your firearm needs them. There's not a lightswitch, doorknob, lamp or picture frame in my house that hasn't been dry fired on thousands of times.

Why dry fire when there's airsoft? Because of the great ammo shortage my son and I are shooting airsoft in the backyard and mixing in an exercise routine to get our heart rates up. It also simulates the physical aspects of an actual fire fight situation. Just make sure you wear eye protection. Those little buggers ricochet everywhere !!

I don't believe in or subscribe to this whole "skill" thing. I don't practice drawing and firing when I shoot and I don't dry fire; I don't aim at things loaded or un- at home and don't think I'm Rambo.

The only skill there is is accuracy. The rest you can't practice unless you put yourself in high stress and dangerous situations daily. It is quite impossible to imitate red zone defense.

I don't at all believe muscle memory can overcome fear or stress when it wasn't developed in it, and find this whole concept Laughable.

At the risk of getting a time out, I am calling this guy a jerk. This and a couple of other posts on the forum recently make me think he is a kid troll with little or no knowledge of firearms.

__________________
May the Force be with you.
An armed society is a polite society - Robert HeinleinA Gun-Free-Zone is nothing more than a hunting preserve for wackos.

At the risk of getting a time out, I am calling this guy a jerk. This and a couple of other posts on the forum recently make me think he is a kid troll with little or no knowledge of firearms.

I sometimes think it is a reflection of society today. Young people watch "reality shows" that depict constant conflict and scripted arguments and think that is the way life is supposed to be. They don't have enough life experience to know the difference.

As a result some people post opinions that are only designed to get conflicting opinions and controversy going. I'm not sure they actually believe the info, but are merely looking for attention, negative or otherwise.

While I'm at most of today's 25 year olds are like the 14 year olds of my day. EXAMPLES : Live at home with parents, play video games 8 hrs a day, thinking about getting a part time job etc.

Ok, sorry guys Rant Over.

Oh by the way I'm only 38 but things sure have changed in the last 15 yrs!